GOP lawsuit on prison gerrymandering is tossed

State Supreme Court Judge Eugene Devine has dismissed the lawsuit brought by several GOP senators — including Queensbury’s Betty Little — against the state law requiring that state prisoners must be counted for purposes of reapportionment in their pre-incarceration addresses, and not in the prisons where they currently lay their heads. Democrats and Republicans have argued for years over the fairness of the old system, which tended to boost rural, upstate, Republican districts with convicts from largely urban and Democratic regions.

The suit had complicated the work of LATFOR, the legislative panel charged with drawing new legislative lines. GOP sources say the plaintiffs plan to appeal.

Here’s the exultant statement from AG Eric Schneiderman, who served in the state Senate when the bill was passed perforce as part of the 2010 budget:

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced a legal victory upholding the state’s law that counts inmates in their home communities, rather than the districts where they are incarcerated, for the purpose of drawing legislative district lines. Schneiderman was the leading proponent of the legislation, which passed in 2010.

“Today’s decision by Judge Devine is a victory for fundamental fairness and equal representation. The court affirmed the legality of counting incarcerated individuals in their home communities for the purposes of redrawing district lines, rather than the districts where they are in prison. As a lawmaker, I fought to end the practice of prison-based gerrymandering that distorted the democratic process and undermined the principle of ‘one person, one vote.’ This decision affirms and applies a fair standard to the drawing of state legislative districts and makes it easier for counties to do the same by providing them with an accurate data set.”

Until 2010, New York drew legislative districts around prisons and counted the people confined there as residents of the prison, allowing the non-voting prison population to award greater legislative representation to districts that contain prisons at the expense of the prisoners’ home communities.

From Mike Murphy, Senate Democratic spokesman:

“The time for delay is over. The Senate Republicans and LATFOR must immediately comply with the law. Any further delay is an outrageous and illegal assault on Democracy.”

From Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif:

“We will review the judge’s decision, but regardless of the final outcome of this lawsuit Republicans will expand our majority in the Senate next year.”